Review of HCG diet and weight loss

Ok, it has been a while since I posted any updates on the HCG diet.  First off, I did NOT do the hormone injection therapy of the diet I used homeopathic drops which I really liked.  I am beginning my last week of the maintenance period before I start adding back starches and sugars.  At this time I don’t know if I want to add back sugar but I definitely have to add back starches which is the reason I only did 30 days of the diet and not 40.

Our family observes the biblical Feasts in which I have to consume a small portion of starch for a total of 8 days.  I have read online of past HCG dieters who came off maintenance too early and starting gaining significantly when they ate starches but didn’t have much of a problem when they ate sugar.

During my first round I lost a total of 31 pounds; I lost 10 doing a modified Phase 1 by just cutting out sugar and then the rest while taking the drops.  I have a history of low blood sugar which I thought would be a problem while on the diet but it turned out to be a mute concern.

Ironically while in my stage of determining if this is the diet I want to do, I spoke with my birth mom who told me of her diabetes problems when she turned 40, of which I am two years away.  Two days into this diet I found out that she passed away due to her weight issues, which really encouraged my decision to do something about my health now before it was too late.

I was able to carry on my normal job responsibilities without any undue stress and came away with a new understanding of my body and food.  I found several good recipes online for my meals but mostly I just ate things raw.   Foods and mainly vegetables that I haven’t liked in the past, I now enjoy adding to my meal.   Overall I have to say that I really like this “diet” and look forward to the next round.

Remember that whatever you decide to do in your journey to regain your health, you have to find what works best for you.  This diet is very limiting on food but for me in many ways I have now discovered especially in P3 what foods affects me the wrong way and what foods my body really enjoys and thrives on.

In my previous post I made mention of a very enlightening video about the future of our food.  Since I have started Phase 3 or the “maintenance” phase in which I am maintaining the weight I have lost so far that the foods I am allowed to eat right now are ones that are not as processed or known to be genetically engineered.    For example: in Phase 3 you can have mayonnaise, cream cheese, salad dressing etc.   I have yet to find mayonnaise without sugar or any starches, I have found one salad dressing without any additives.  This has led me to open up my cupboards and start making my own food, it is like going back to your roots.  :)

If you want to conquer your weight problem without drastic measures then my first piece of advice is to stop buying processed food, put on an apron, open your cupboards and start making things from scratch.   Not only will you know what is in your food but you will notice your body responding to the change in a positive light!  I also challenge you to try new foods, don’t try to many at once until you know if your body will have a reaction but maybe once a week try a new vegetable or fruit you’ve never had before.

Before starting the diet, I had never heard of chicory or chard and beet greens were something I thought you tossed away once you used the beets.  In some ways, this experience was like a science project – searching the internet to see what part of the plant can be eaten and what is dangerous…

I’m really pleased with the weight and inches lost!!  In my next post, I will post some of the recipes that I have come to enjoy.

Until next time!

Video about the path our food is taking

A friend shared a very important video with me about how our food is now containing more GMO or GE (genetic engineering) components than before and what we can expect to see in the future.

The video is titled “The Future of Food“.  You can watch it free online at hulu.com.

If you have ever wondered how our food managed to be under the control of so much GMO or GE this educational film will inform you on how it started, and what the end result just might become.  Have we seen the end of our food being mass produced and chemicalized or is this just the beginning?  Is there anything we can do about it either?  Will our food continue to sustain us or kill us?

After watching this video by myself and again with my children I am more determined now to teach them and myself the importance of recognizing what real food should look and taste like.

I hope you enjoy!

Hay Bale Gardens

I received in a dollar saving email group that I am on.  Click on the links below to read more about this option. This is a clever way to get a garden if the other means are not feasible for you:

To read this article on the homepage, click here

“Raised bed gardens are a great solution for growing plants if you can’t bend easily, your dirt is poor, or you don’t even have soil. But if the cost of construction supplies like wood and nails won’t leave much room in your budget for important gardening supplies like seeds and plants, consider using a hay bale garden instead.

Hay bale gardens provides several advantages:

• There is no need to rotate crops, since each season you start with new hay bales.
• The plants grow in a complete organic environment. Organic soil-free potting media will help hold nutrients and water more efficiently for faster growth.
• Hay bales create an environment similar to gardening hills in soil. The plants will have good drainage.
• Weeding time is minimized.

Select bales of hay or straw from fields that have not been treated with herbicides that contain clopyralid or picloram such as tordon, surmount or garzon. These weed killers will stay in the bales and can affect the growth of the plants.

Straw bales typically have fewer weed seeds than hay bales, since the straw comes from cereal grains that have been harvested. The best bales come from wheat, rice or barley straw. These types of bales have good drainage. If you must choose hay bales, choose Bermuda, fescue, ryegrass or a grass native to your area. Select rectangular bales that are firm and tied tightly.

Place the bales in a sunny location. Most plants need at least six hours of sunlight each day. Plants such as tomatoes that do not receive this much sun will not produce as much fruit. Once the garden is in place, you will not be able to move the bales.

The surface where you put your garden should be a place that can accept runoff. If you are gardening on concrete or on a rooftop, you will need to provide a place for the runoff water to go. You can place the bales on a tarp. This will divert the water to other areas so that it is not concentrated directly in one spot.

Place the bales so that the bindings are facing upward and the grain of the straw or hay is parallel to the ground. Do not cut the bindings.

Completely soak the bales with water from a garden hose once or twice every day for three days. If you are gardening on a rooftop, be aware that a 50-pound bale will hold 125 pounds of water. Make sure the surface you are gardening on will hold this weight.

On the fourth day, add two cups of dolomite lime and 1/2 cup ammonium sulfate to the bale. Mix this fertilizer into the top of the bale by scratching it into the grain of the hay or straw fibers with a gardening fork and water it in by once again saturating the bale.

Add fertilizer to the bale for the next five days. If you are gardening organically, use a manure tea as your fertilizer. If not, use 1/2 cup ammonium sulfate. The ammonium sulfate or manure tea will activate microbes that decompose the bale in the center of the hay.

On day 10, add 1/2 cup of a balanced 8-8-8 fertilizer or one cup of a 10-10-10 fertilizer. The numbers on the package represent the total amount of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in the fertilizer. Add another 1/2 cup of this fertilizer once per month as your plants grow. Never fertilize the bales more than once per month after they have been planted.

The bales should be ready to plant on day 11. Create a top cap of soil for the bale garden by mixing bagged potting soil and bagged, composted manure from your local garden center. Spread this over the top of the bales in a four-inch layer. Manure must be composted to eliminate weed seeds.

Plant vegetable transplants by pushing aside the top cap and pulling the straw fibers open. Place the root ball of the plant directly into the straw fibers. Then push the fibers closed around the root ball and move the top cap back in place. A bale of hay is large enough for two tomato plants or four pepper plants, but you may plant any type of vegetable in your garden. Spring gardens may be planted just after the last yearly frost date in your region. A fall garden may be planted by midsummer.

Check the bales daily once they are planted to see if they need watering. Even if the outside of the bales are moist, the inside must remain as damp as a rag that has been wrung out.

When the season ends, simply remove the bales.”

Sources:

• Nagel, D. & Potter, W. (2005). Gardening in the Bale. Mississippi State University Extension Service. Retrieved March 4, 2011, frommsucares.com/pubs/infosheets/is1678.pdf
• Wade, Dr. Gary. & Zerba, Raymond. (January 26, 2010). Hay Bale Gardening. University of Florida IFAS Extension. Retrieved March 4, 2011 from clay.ifas.ufl.edu/documents/MG/Haybale_garden.pdf
• Hoade, Linda. (November 20, 2010). Straw Bale Garden. Penn State University. Retrieved March 4, 2011 frommontgomery.extension.psu.edu/Horticulture/StrawBaleGarden.pdf

Take the Next Step:

• For more on gardening, please visit here.
• See what others are saying about raised bed gardening in the Dollar Stretcher Community.
• Tell us your experience with hay bale gardens or other raised bed gardens in the Comments section below. We’d all benefit from hearing your great ideas, so don’t be shy!

February 10th, 2012 Weight Loss cont’d

Fast forward to the weekend of February 10th when I decided to go ahead and start this diet and see what happens.  We were planning a trip out of town so I figured this would be a perfect time to do my “loading days” and then start my 500 calorie diet when I got home.

My “loading days” went well however I was concerned the first day of the 500 calories that I hadn’t eaten enough but from what I’ve read the focus isn’t on about getting full as it is about eating all the high fat food you can stuff in to get your metabolism up and revved for when the calories drop.

For those who haven’t read about this diet, you consume 500 calories daily for a minimum of 23 days (with the drops and 72 hours without the drops) before you head into the maintenance period.  The reason for the low calories is your body is getting the additional 1000 or more calories from the stores of abnormal fat throughout your body and not from your structural fat found in your  face, joints, etc.  If you do not consume any calories your body would automatically go into starvation mode and not release the stores.

I have personally done many diets over the years and as I mentioned in my previous post weight has been an issue in my family.  In fact a family member just passed away from weight issues.  This became a wake up call to me.  I started the Master Cleanse about 5 years ago got to day seven when I had to stop because of problems I was having.  I managed to lose 10 pounds in that week which I gained back later.

One of the biggest benefits I like about this diet is that because I am eating a limited amount of food, I can schedule my meals when the rest of my family is eating.   Some of the things I am looking for this diet to do is:

*lose weight in the areas that are advertised (my abnormal fat stores and not in others)

* will my health improve or will I get so sick that I have to stop

* does the weight stay off

* will it come off quickly
In the past I have attempted to drop a few pounds but cutting out some of my calories only to find to my horror that I have gained weight even after consuming very little food.   Also, I have suffered from hypoglycemia since I was child that when I went for long periods of time not eating that I would get faint, sick to my stomach, dizzy and the list goes on.

So far I have been on the HCG diet with homeopathic drops from a reputable company without any adverse reactions at this time.  I have not felt weak, or extreme hunger in the 11 days since starting the drops.

If this is a path that you choose please by all means check out all the resources on the internet, check out books and do your own research to make sure this is the diet for you!  Due to much controversy you may find that it will become more and more difficult to purchase these drops because of government guidelines, but for many of you this is no surprise after the attack on our supplements recently.   Check out “Pounds and Inches” manuscript written by Dr. Simeon and can be found for free on the internet and “The Weight Loss Cure” which can be found at most libraries.

The drops that I got do not contain animal products only natural herbs.

Weight Loss – January 13-14th, 2012

This is a subject on many people minds of how to improve their health and shrink their size.  About a month ago, I realized that it was time to get my weight in check especially when my health was starting to take a turn that I didn’t like.  My clothes were getting tighter and the cost to buy new clothes was not an option.  I work an evening job that keeps me running for several hours and I would come home tired, with sore joints and difficulty just getting around.  Weight loss has always been a problem in my life since I was little as well as this is a trait in our family history.

Note: I am writing this after the event:  1/14/2012

This weekend we are traveling to Illinois to perform for a wedding and play songs for a service.  While I am riding on the trip I brought along a book from the library that had piqued my interest.  It is called “The Weight Loss Cure“.  The author of the book shares information discovered from a Dr. in Rome who discovered a way to lose weight and keep your body burning fuel more efficiently instead of gaining back the weight once you resume your normal diet.

I have heard many bad reviews of the author but I have to say that I agree with his thoughts of eating more of an organic diet and to eliminate or reduce processed to the very least you can do.    The diet this Dr. discovered is called the HCG diet.  The diet calls for drastic calorie reduction while taking hormone shots which causes the body to release the abnormal fat stores which is what accounts for obesity.  The statement that intrigued me the most was that once the diet has been finished your hypothalamus has been reset to burn fuel at the lower weight instead of storing fat.

Once I got home research was started to see if I could find more about the shots and look for an alternative that was a little more into my budget.  I found some homeopathic drops that seem to work just as well and got great reviews.  I’m interested in trying this experiment to see if it works.

Thinking about gardening yet?

Last year our attempts at gardening did not go as planned.  This year we were wanting to start the ground early so that it will be ready by planting time, we also wanted to enlarge our gardening space this year.

I guess due to time restraints and busy schedules those plans have been put on the back burner until now.  This last week we have had an amazing nice warm weather pattern that it is easy to forget that it is January and a big snowfall could occur at any time.  The weather has been so great that heavy coats, hats and mittens seem like a thing of the past.

Planting, picking seeds and preparing for weeds hadn’t crossed my mind until an email I just received mentioned that now is  a good time to start the process.

As mentioned in previous posts, when looking for seeds we highly recommend companies that are Organic and non-GMO brand. Heirlooms seeds are the best!

Remember that even if you don’t have a lot of space in your dwellings, you can also start by doing a little planter until each year you are expanding your green thumb.  If you have an opportunity close by try joining a gardening club the experience and wisdom you gain from others just might help your garden flourish!

Good news on the Supplement ban!

I just received this article from one of my autism subscriptions!  A positive step to this measure….

“Dear Autism Coach Customer,
Thanks to all of you who contacted FDA and/or your representatives concerning the New Supplement Ingredient Guidelines and shared this information with others!

According to the Alliance for Natural Health, hundreds of thousands of people emailed their congressmen and senators and 20,000 people telephoned their congressional representatives to voice opposition to the FDA’s proposed New Supplement Ingredient Guidelines. To read this update, please go to: http://www.anh-usa.org/fda-violates-federal-law/

The Alliance for Natural Health organization is so encouraged by the outpouring of protest against the FDA’s New Supplement Ingredient Guidelines, that they are going further and asking for the New Supplement Ingredient guidelines to be repealed!

Knowing our amazing community of activists who have done so much to help our kids, I’m willing to bet the autism community was in large part responsible for spreading the word resulting in this enormous outpouring of feedback to our representatives!

Another example of autism activism at work on a national level is Republican presidential candidate, Texas Governor Rick Perry, losing popularity because of his initiative to force every girl in Texas to receive the Gardasil vaccine for the human papilloma virus, which has unfortunately harmed thousands of girls since its introduction (for more information visit http://truthaboutgardasil.org/).

Based upon this enormous outpouring of protest, it is evident that the majority of people in the U.S. are on our side and are every bit as concerned about how our leaders and federal agencies are making decisions that endanger our health and the future of our children.

We have an election year coming up. Even if an incumbent representative of your district or state is in your pollitical party of preference, if they are working against the best interests of the autism community and you cannot dissuade them, why not run against them and help to reform your party? Even if you do not win, you will be doing a public service to bring to the attention of the public issues of concern to the autism community (such as the FDA’s attack on the supplement industry and the government’s cover-up of the link between vaccines and autism). Who wouldn’t vote for someone who runs on a ticket of supporting cleaning up the environment and food supply and improving the overall health of the nation? Perhaps even local autism parent’s groups might consider picking and supporting someone from their group to run for office. 

Thanks again to all of you who took action! If we keep advocating for what is important to us, there’s no limit to what we can accomplish!”

Best regards,
Sue Bennet
Autism Coach
www.autismcoach.com

Staying on top of Federal laws to ban supplements

I wrote a blog post several weeks ago requesting you to view and send comments in to lawmakers protesting the ban on natural supplements.  There are several politicians and government agencies who are pushing their belief that we (the public) should not have the decision on whether we would like to treat our ailments with natural remedies or conventional medicine.

If you do not stay aware and voice your opinion then you will be forced to treat yourself with conventional means and not through a change of diet and herbs.  Having worked in the medical field for many years I believe that there is a time and place for medicine.  The problem I see is that instead of letting our body heal itself (which is what it was created to do from the beginning), we rush to the doctor, take the prescribed medication and go on our way.  One important factor in that equation that is missing, is the need for the body to rest and recuperate.

I have started a new job, and I started noticing at the end of the week how tired and anxious I was from constantly running from one place to another.  Rest is very important to the body in recovery.  Natural herbs also provide energy to the body, where as conventional medicine not only kills the virus but also the beneficial organisms that help you in healing.

The government may ban supplements, if they do, I highly recommend learning how to consume the herbs by growing them and using them in cooking if you have to.

In the meantime: keep growing and learning more about natural health.  Take charge of your healing!

An article about: Stop the FDA from banning your supplements!

I have joined an online email group where this article was posted.  Please view the source’s blog to obtain more information……..

http://nutrientscure.wordpress.com

Subject: Stop the FDA from banning your supplements
November 9, 2011

Stop the FDA from banning your supplements

Do you enjoy your HD cable television set or your iPhone? How would you feel if the government stepped in to tell you that you can’t use these anymore? Instead, you have to return to the archaic analogue bulky phones of more than 17 years ago, or switch back to just network TV with its rabbit-ear antenna. Would you sit and take it? I hope not!

Well, that’s exactly what’s going to happen to your supplements at the hands of our rulers if we don’t act and act decisively. The FDA has sat and watched (not always peacefully) the supplement industry make incredible progress for 17 years.
Just 3 mg of this essential “anti-aging” nutrient could protect you from brittle bones … painful joints … memory loss … prostate problems … and more
But I’ll practically guarantee you won’t find it in your multivitamin formula!

How to get this nutrient – without adding another supplement to your daily regimen:

Learn more:

After 17 years with a near-perfect safety record (ephedra being one of the only exceptions), the FDA has announced a new set of guidelines for supplements. These new guidelines will roll back the availability of supplements to those that were sold in 1994, and in the forms they were sold at during that time.
In other words, these guidelines will roll back a decade of innovation, discovery, and improvements. We have discovered incredible combinations of supplements, better delivery methods, improved methods of extraction, etc. But your rulers say they know better than science and you. They plan to remove the majority of supplements that you well know, including fish oil, high-potency vitamin C products, new bioflavonoids (such as resveratrol), and combination products.

In order to get these non-patentable formulations to you, the supplement companies will have to comply with costs and regulations that will drive them out of business.

It’s no wonder this is happening. Big Pharma’s in big trouble. Its products not only don’t work, but they also kill and maim people. Profitable drugs are going off patent, which will incur bazillions in lost revenue. Pharma’s products simply cover symptoms with chemicals, resulting in yet more symptoms, needing yet more treatment. This is great for the drug companies. But it’s horrific for you and your wallet.

Big Pharma knows it’s selling snake oil. And it knows the public is getting wise to its ponzi scheme. So if you can’t beat the competition with a superior product, as a true free market system should provide, then buy the government and destroy your competition with regulations. Big Pharma has the billions of dollars it takes to buy and control government. The FDA says it’s doing all this to protect you. But the reality is the FDA is doing this to protect Big Pharma.

It’s not just the government and FDA that Pharma own and runs. It’s also the medical journals that are supposed to publish information that can help save your life. In light of the FDA’s move to wipe out supplements, I’d like to give a nod to cardiologist Stephen Sinatra, MD. Two recent articles in mainstream medicine admitted that conventional medicine has NOTHING to offer for a serious and growing heart problem – diastolic dysfunction. Dr. Sinatra wrote the Archives of Internal Medicine a letter (in his capacity as a cardiologist) to the editor in response to the two reports pointing out his effective approach using the “awesome foursome” for heart: D-ribose, CoQ10, magnesium, and L-carnitine, the very supplements I recommend here.

You’d think that the journal would snap up a treatment for a major disorder. This disorder affects millions worldwide, has no drug treatment, and can lead to serious heart failure. Add to this that it’s a disorder often caused by statins!
But, no, he quickly got a form letter of rejection. Sinatra noted that previous medical research found that the more pharmaceutical advertising a journal publishes, the less reporting on supplements it does. And, what these journals report is generally negative.

Now please consider that there is NO drug that cures any disease (except perhaps antibiotics for infection). Consider that nutrition insufficiency is 100% proven as a major cause of disease. It’s also 100% proven to help or cure certain conditions, like the above heart condition. So, is there any wonder who owns the FDA and who has every interest in controlling the disease maintenance system of America?

Here’s what you need to do today:

Complaining to the FDA will likely do little. Leopards don’t change their spots. Neither will those who are working actively FOR Pharma. Please contact your U.S. elected officials. You can find their contact information at: www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml.

Please call their offices AND write letters demanding that they rein in the FDA to protect your rights to the supplements you choose (not supplements based on the knowledge of two decades ago). There is already enough protection written into law for the FDA to move on anything found unsafe. We don’t need to wipe out an entire industry at this time of economic hardship. We don’t need to wipe out your means to maintain and regain your health, at a time when “symptom suppression” costs are skyrocketing. We need to empower people to keep well.
My publisher Garret Wood has a far more detailed story that you can read here.

Please read it thoroughly and join me in my continuing efforts to totally wrest our medical freedoms from draconian government interventions. Please act NOW to prevent the 200-year-old warnings of Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Rush from happening.

“Was the government to prescribe to us our medicine and diet, our bodies would be in such keeping as our souls are now.” – Thomas Jefferson
“The Constitution of this Republic should make special provision for medical freedom. To restrict the art of healing to one class will constitute the Bastille of medical science. All such laws are un-American and despotic.

….Unless we put medical freedom into the constitution the time will come when medicine will organize into an undercover dictatorship and force people who wish doctors and treatment of their own choice to submit to only what the dictating outfit offers.” – Benjamin Rush (famous colonial physician, Founding Father and signer of the Declaration of Independence, 1787).

Yours for better health and medical freedom,

Robert J. Rowen, MD

http://nutrientscure.wordpress.com

 

Kosher, affordable, natural supplements

If you have been looking for supplements that are cost effective and kosher (for those who are concerned about consuming pork capsules), then check out this Naturopath’s website.  I have found this person to be very knowledgeable and helpful when it comes to determining the needs of my son who has autism; you may visit the blog concerning our experiences with autism and what we have or are doing to improve his progress: www.myautismjourney.wordpress.com

To order supplements or read the Herbalist I mentioned above’s blog visit: Mountain Granny Organic Herbs  or if you choose you may also email her at: Mountain Granny

Also remember: IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO SHARE WHAT HERBS AND VITAMINS THAT YOU ARE ALREADY TAKING IN ORDER THAT ADVERSE REACTIONS DO NOT OCCUR FROM MIXING CERTAIN HERBS TOGETHER!!

CHECK OUT THIS VALUABLE RESOURCE!!